


Torn

by Angelicat2



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Blood and Injury, Hurt Keith (Voltron), Keith (Voltron) Whump, Major Character Injury, Missions Gone Wrong, Protective Shiro (Voltron), Shiro (Voltron) Whump, Team Voltron Family, Team as Family, Temporary Character Death, White-Haired Keith (Voltron), and so is friendship, at the end, grab a tissue everyone, lion magic is great
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-18
Updated: 2020-02-18
Packaged: 2021-02-27 23:27:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,387
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22784056
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Angelicat2/pseuds/Angelicat2
Summary: A mission to retrieve some information at a Galra base backfires badly when the team gets cornered. Too bad Keith's caught in the crosshairs of the Galra's plans to hurt Shiro.
Relationships: Galrans & Keith (Voltron), Hunk & Keith (Voltron), Keith & Lance (Voltron), Keith & Pidge | Katie Holt, Keith & Red Lion (Voltron), Keith & Shiro (Voltron), Keith/Shiro (Voltron), Shiro & Black Lion (Voltron)
Comments: 12
Kudos: 245





	Torn

“Where to next?”

Shiro glances around, examining the room they were in. They were currently in a Galra base, trying to get more information about Pidge’s family and the general stuff that the castle didn’t have. 10,000 years was a long time to go without updating the info and here they were, trying to get there. Shiro could hear some fighting in the distance, knowing that the other three paladins were out there fighting.

“I don’t know,” Pidge frowned, brows down as she messes with the data, “I think that this is it.”

“You sure?” Shiro has to ask, hearing a louder crash outside. The doors start to open, so he gets into a fighting stance, “Because I think we’re out of time.”

The doors open all the way just as Lance and Hunk both run into the room, coming to their sides and standing guard with their guns out. Shiro lights up his arm as a bunch of bots march forward like an ominous sea of metal waves. They all stop just yards in front of them, not daring a step closer.

“Get back-to-back,” Shiro hisses out, pressing back some. He doesn’t bother to look, but he can tell that the other three listen to him without a word. Each scoots back until they have each other’s backs. A moment passes before the bots part. A low chuckle comes over them as the general in the ship steps in through the machines.

“The Paladins of Voltron,” he smirks with a wolfish grin. Shiro notices that some fur is missing from his face and that the armor on his left side is dirty and dented slightly, “It is an honor seeing you at my base. However, I must implore you to give up. You will not be leaving this base alive. Make it easy on yourselves.”

“Oh, yeah,” Lance grins, pointing his rifle right at the man, “What makes you think that we won’t win? We can totally kick your butt.”

“Because if you try anything, your friend gets killed in a painful way,” the man laughs as a clang is heard off to the side. The team glances to the side, only for their eyes to widen in shock. Keith is pressed to the floor, his helmet removed and hands cuffed up in the front. He’s somewhat limp, clearly too disoriented to do much other than glance around quickly. He tries to get up, but the two bots who have him in their hold smash him down onto the floor even more. The man cackles darkly as he moves up to the other, pressing his boot to Keith’s chin, moving his head up which gets him a glare, “Feisty boy. He blindsided me. I have to admire the bravery. But he did not succeed, and his mistake will be my fortune.”

The man quickly grabbed the younger up by his throat, gripping just enough to lift Keith up. Said Red Paladin glares at him, eyes steel hard.

“Oh don’t give me that look,” the Galra snickers before he lifts Keith up further. The smaller grips his wrist with his cuffed ones, not getting anywhere as the larger smirks, “You are too reckless, boy. I like that, such a fighting spirit. If only you were on the right side. You sure fight well, for a half-breed.”

Their eyes all widen more in shock. Keith’s do too as he glares at the man.

“How do you know that!” Pidge shouts at the man who laughs.

“It’s not hard to see,” the man shifts so that they’re both facing them. The man’s right hand is holding onto Keith, the man behind Keith enough that a stray shot could hit their teammate instead. Shiro holds his ground, too afraid that anything can set off this situation, “He fights like us. He has our spirit. He wouldn’t quit, the brat.”

Keith grins, huffing before doing something all of them could predict. With a small shout, Keith kicked his foot out at the man, hitting his side with all of his strength. The older cries out before releasing him. Keith plops onto the floor, rolling slightly before getting up to rush over to them. He’s not fast enough to avoid the arm slamming into his shoulder. The other collapses with a small scream of pain.

“You will pay for that, half-breed,” the man kicks the other in the stomach, getting another cry. Shiro can feel himself instantly rush forward to take out the Galra. He stops a foot in when the man chuckles, “I wouldn’t do that if I were you, Champion.”

He freezes, glaring at the man.

“Your weakness,” the other laughs before pressing a boot to the Keith’s back, getting a groan. Keith tries to get up again, but his hands are trapped under his chest plate. His cheek presses to the dirty floor, glaring up at the man, “And to think that we all wondered what would make the Champion care about anything.”

“Shut up,” Keith growls from the floor, “You don’t know Shiro.”

“I don’t need to,” the other smirks before picking Keith up again, fingers digging his jaw tightly enough to leave bruises. The other winces slightly, once again gripping his wrist, “I can tell he’s attached to you. He’s doing a terrible job at hiding it.”

Keith huffs at him, dark eyes glancing from him over to Shiro. A moment passes before his eyes soften in understanding. Shiro flinches, hating how he must look desperate right now. Those grey-violet orbs stare at him for a moment, before Keith turns his attention back to the other.

“Leave him out of this.”

“Ohhh!” The man laughs, squeezing a bit while Keith hisses in pain, “But he is part of this! Why would I grab you if not to torture him?”

“Don’t touch him!” Keith growls, trying to stretch out his hands to claw at the other who merely swats his appendages away as if he’s just an annoying bug, “If you touch Shiro, I’ll destroy you.”

“Feisty,” the man chuckles before he grips more. Keith chokes slightly on his breath. They all tense as the Galra shakes his head, “But you’re in no spot to hurt me. If I were you, I’d worry more about making it out of here alive.”

They all frown, wondering what the man was talking up. He already told them they would die, but this was much more sinister than before, more dark. They didn’t have time to process it before Keith gasps softly. They all whipped their attention to the two only to grip their weapons tightly. Shiro’s arm burns brighter than before, as he barely holds himself back from attacking the monster.

There’s a long blade in Keith’s side, connected to the man’s unused arm. The blade is barely into Keith’s skin, just enough to draw blood to the surface. But already they could see that the Galra was slowly sliding more of the long blade into Keith’s side. The younger winces deeply, gripping the man’s wrist harder now. Blood dribbles from the blade onto the floor as the man holds Keith still. The undersuit is clearly torn on itself as it inches in.

“Let him go!” Hunk protests, glaring at the man with tears in his eyes, “What the fuck? Why?”

“It is fit punishment for the Champion,” the man smirks, pressing the blade in more, “He escaped and now he’ll pay for it.”

“L-leave him a-alone,” Keith pants from his spot, clearly hurting. At this point, a bigger puddle of scarlet settles onto the floor. Whatever the sword doesn’t catch, slides down onto Keith’s armor, staining it an even more off-setting red. 

“Oh, I can’t do that,” the man shakes his head, grinning with sharp teeth, “Even if he weren’t here, I’d be obligated to cut you up like fresh meat. You’re a treacherous half-breed, after all. We don’t like mutts like you. I love to watch you suffer.”

By now, the blood dripped down from Keith’s foot. The droplets joined with the rest, making the puddle grow as Shiro’s body screams at him to attack. He was killing Keith slowly before their eyes, they had to do something. They had to move. They had to get rid of the monster before he could do worse! Keith was already growing pale, his breathing labored as he digs his fingers into the other’s wrist-guard. A weak grunt leaves his lips.

“Shiro!”

“I know!” Shiro answers back, “But we can’t. He could cut Keith in half. We’ll never make it back to a healing pod in time for that!”

“You’ll never make it back to a healing pod in time as it is,” the man smirks, pressing the weapon in further. Shiro’s stomach flies to his throat when the very tip comes out of Keith’s other side, the suit bending for a few seconds before splitting open to expose the sword that’s painted with red. The younger pants unevenly, a broken cry leaving his lips. At the same time, a bead of blood drips off of his bottom lip, rolling onto the chest plate and curving downward, “I’ve hit every vital organ he has, besides his heart and mind.”

The man continues to shove the blade in. The other end inches out as yellow eyes watch them, a sharp smirk on his lips. Keith pants shakily, breathing wet as another streak of blood drops from his lips which are turning blue now. The other is so pale at this point that he’s beginning to look translucent.

“Sh-Sh’r,” he breathes out, going a bit limp. Shiro’s heart leaps out of his chest, “Sh-Sh-”

“Hah,” the Galra laughs as Keith drops his hands from his wrist. The younger’s breathing is even wetter than before, so much so that it sounds like he’s trying to breath with water in his lungs, “Looks like I got a lung too. He has just long enough to live to watch me take you down.”

“Put him down!”

“Leave him alone!”

“Let him go!”

“Not until you’re dead, Champion,” the man laughs as he stops sliding the blade over. Keith’s head leans to the side, losing his strength, “I’m going to tear your other limb off and then make sure no one recognizes you when they find you. Or maybe I should send you back to the pits. I’m sure someone else would love to have you to themselves. Why I can just see it now. They’ll carve you up real good. We’ll see as you’re stripped to the bone, Champion. You aren’t making it out of h-”

“I SAID LEAVE HIM ALONE!” A low growl echoes around them before Keith snaps. Shiro watches as his eyes turn yellow, not unlike the many Galra they’ve run across. His large orbs shrink down to pins as his teeth sharpen out into fangs. Barely a second passes before he grips the other’s wrist, glaring straight into the man’s eyes. With a shout, he kicks straight at the man’s wrist. The man drops him in surprise, and Keith lands on his feet. Another second passes before he snarls, hands reaching out and dripping the man’s neck as he jumps onto the Galra’s thigh. With another growl, he twists his arms.

**SNAP!**

The Galra drops to the ground, already dead. Keith himself hops off the man’s leg before staggering to the side. The sword is still in the younger’s side, blood dripping off of the weapon.

“KEITH!”

The younger stumbles before collapsing onto the ground. The bots come to life, raining down on them as they jump into action.

“GUYS!”

“GET HIM, SHIRO!” Pidge screams as she whips her taser into the crowd, electrocuting them, “WE’LL STOP THESE!”

“YOU’RE GOING DOWN!” Lance shouts as he fires at the closest two, he’s more angry than Shiro has ever seen him before.

“GET HIM BACK TO THE CASTLE!” Hunk exclaims as he hits six bots.

Shiro bolts for Keith, cutting down all the robots in his way. It takes him about ten seconds to get to Keith’s side, but it feels so so so much longer. As soon as he gets to Keith, he drops onto his knees and gazes at the other. 

He’s pale and trembling, trying to breathe but failing. Blood bubbles out of his mouth, hair stuck to his cheek as he gasps brokenly. His whole side is caked with hot blood. He looks...he looks so small lying there that Shiro wants to curse at the world. He wants to wrap the other up and protect him, but he can’t do that. Not like it is. He had to get him out.

“I’m sorry,” he gasps out softly before he grabs the sword. There’s no point in keeping it in, since he’s already bleeding out. A second passes before he yanks the weapon out, tossing it to the side. It clangs to the floor, loud even among the chaos. Shiro quickly latches onto Keith, picking him up princess style. The blood that flows onto his chest and armor makes him sick, feeling ready to cry. Keith’s head rests onto his shoulder, gurgling weakly as dark eyes stare at him, hazy, “You’re gonna be okay, buddy.”

Keith tries to mutter something, only to cough. More blood flows out of his mouth, making him gag some as Shiro darts through the robots. The others do a great job at making a path for him and he takes it. He rushes out of there, trying not to slip on the blood on his feet as he runs straight to his lion. He gets there without any issues, rushing up to the large being.

Black opens for him right away, rumbling in his mind as he runs to the chair. He carefully places Keith down by his feet, ignoring the weak grip that Keith has on his arm. He quickly grabs the yokes, urging his lion to fly. But…

The lion stays.

“Black!” Shiro cries out as he grips the pedal harder, yanking it up, “We have to get Keith back to the pods!”

His lion rumbles apologetically in his mind. The older man gasps before his eyes widen. He slams his hands down on the panel.

“BLACK! HE’S DYING!”

The lion once again sends him a rumble. Shiro doesn’t care to listen to the rest as he slams his hands down again, pressing buttons. Nothing happens as the lion settles down.

“BLACK! WE HAVE TO GET HIM BACK!” Shiro calls out before his arm turns on without his consent, “LET US LEAVE! WHAT ARE YOU DOING!”

“Sh-Sh-”

He instantly hears Keith’s choked call. Shiro listens this time, running over to the other and kneeling down by his side. More blood soaks into his knees, but he can’t care as the younger stares at him. His breath comes out strange and barely there. Shiro feels cold as he rests his hand to Keith’s cheek. It’s not just him. Keith is cold too.

Ice cold.

“Sh-” Keith attempts to speak, panting in between every shaky gasp, “S-sor…”

“Hey, no,” Shiro soothes him, brushing his thumb over his skin, “It’s not your fault. I don’t blame you. You...you gave it your all.”

“So-rr,” he says anyway, resting his cheek against the other’s hand, “Sh-Sh.”

“Just…” Shiro frowns, tears clogging his eyes, “Just rest, okay? I got you. You’re safe.”

Keith gasps slightly, hand latching onto his wrist. There’s a strength there that neither have left, as Shiro feels the tears fall. The other makes another gasping sound, clearly unable to breathe now. Red foam comes from his mouth as he twitches some, his hand grabbing Shiro’s wrist more. He continues to try breathing, but nothing but sick wetness comes up with it. Blood gushes from his lips as his eyes grow even more hazy, “I-I-”

Shiro sees the other mouth some words. He knows what they mean. He knows what they are. Three little words that end his world, end his universe. He grips the other, ignoring that the whole floor has a puddle of cooling liquid. He ignores his heartache, his pain, ignores that he’s losing his best friend. He’s losing his best friend.

He grips the other tight, unable to let go.

“You can’t go,” he whispers softly, pressing his forehead to Keith’s, “Please don’t leave me. Keith. I love you too. Please, don’t. What do I do without you?”

Keith’s hand drops from his wrist, landing limply on his chest. A moment goes by before Shiro fails to feel his chest moving at all. He gazes over to see that Keith is still, eyes closed and breath gone. No new foam leaves his mouth even as a bead rolls down his chin. The wounds are still bleeding, but not much now.

There’s nothing left to bleed.

Shiro cries, heart shattering in his chest as he hugs Keith close.

He couldn’t be gone. Keith was supposed to live through this war. He was supposed to outlive Shiro. He was supposed to become the leader, something Shiro knew he was fit for. He was…

But Keith was dead.

Shiro sobs more. His best friend is dead, on a ridiculous mission that wouldn’t even get them the information they need. Shiro wants to scream. He wants to go back into that base and tear it apart with his bare hands. He’d rip the Galra apart bit by painful bit if he were still alive.

Time distorts for Shiro after that.

He hears the Red Lion roar in the distance, mourning her paladin. The lion sounds absolutely heartbroken, as if she’s lost everything that’s ever mattered to her. He gets his wish, the place being shredded beneath her claws like butter. No one stands a chance on that base, and Shiro doesn’t care as he holds Keith close to his chest. The other is so limp and cold that Shiro doesn’t feel like he’s holding his best friend. The blood begins to dry, getting tacky on his armor. He feels Black take off to some destination, but he ignores it as he cries onto Keith’s face. The tears streak their way down his face, leaving small rivers on the blood.

“Shiro,” a voice calls as he wraps himself around Keith more. He won’t let them take him. They can’t have him. They’ve already taken everything he had: his crew, his freedom, his arm...they can’t take Keith too, “Is he…”

He gazes up. It’s no Galra or Altean or anyone there. It’s Pidge, too small and scared, face pale and eyes wide. She’s just standing there, as though she doesn’t know what to do. Shiro can’t blame her, in his own world of agony. The youngest seems to get it without being told, plopping onto the floor with him, grabbing Keith’s hand. A long but soft cry leaves her as she rests her helmeted head to his cold shoulder.

“No, Keith,” she cries out, “You’re the strong one. You’re supposed to make it. You have to make it. Who...Who’s going to be here to remind me not to do something stupid and go off on my own to find Matt and dad?”

“Guys, don’t we have to get Keith to the-” Lance’s voice stops as both he and Hunk wander in. Shiro doesn’t move, only rests his face to Keith’s neck. There’s no heartbeat, no breath.

“That’s…” Hunk pants before they come closer, falling to their knees too, “That’s way too much blood. He’s...He’s alive, right? He has to be? He’s the toughest person I know. He...right, guys? Guys? Please, say something.”

“He’s gone,” Lance mutters in shock, voice soaked with sadness, “He’s…”

Shiro only holds him tighter before he sobs more. Normally, at this point, he’d be strong for his team. They needed a leader. They needed their leader. They needed the Black Paladin.

But he couldn’t be that. He wanted his best friend back. He _needed_ his best friend back. There was no universe without Keith.

Black tingled in his mind. He could feel her trying to tell him something. He blinks, listening for what she would say. A vision flares in his mind, of separate pieces glowing appearing and connecting to each other. Each glows a different color except for the one that’s dark like its light is broken. All of the parts come together, lighting up before the last piece lights up bright red.

“Did you see that?” Pidge exclaims, “We can save him!”

“What if it does something to him?” Lance asks, afraid, “I mean, didn’t Allura and Coran say that no one should ever be brought back from the dead?”

“But it’s our only option,” Hunk mutters as he places his hand on Keith’s other one, “I’m in.”

“Me too.”

“Alright,” Lance nods, smiling weakly, “Can’t let Samurai leave that easily, can we?”

“Then it’s settled,” Shiro presses his hands to Keith’s face, one on each side, “We’re getting him back. He’s coming home.”

A bright light burst over them as Shiro grips Keith tighter. It’s...it’s hard to describe. It’s like they are everywhere but nowhere at once. There are stars and cosmos and planes of purple and green and yellow and blue. Each appears like in the vision, each of them in the colored parts. The red spot is dim, something flickering in the spot.

It’s Keith.

The other seems to be walking away, his back turned to them. If Shiro looks hard enough, he swears he sees a figure, a man in the distance.

“KEITH!”

The late teen freezes, not moving.

“KEITH!”

“DUDE!”

“COME BACK!”

The other twists around, brows down in confusion. He flickers more, glancing between the other side and them before scooting back towards the other direction.

“DON’T LEAVE!”

“NO, NO, NO!”

“DON’T GO THAT WAY!”

Keith doesn’t stop. He continues on. Shiro goes so cold, he’s sure nothing will ever make him warm again.

“KEITH!” He screams.

Keith freezes, turning back to them. His face is even more confused and worried now.

“Sh-ro,” his voice cuts out as he frowns, “Wh-do-re?”

“DON’T GO!” Shiro shouts back before he walks forward, the color following him. He can’t let Keith go. He won’t let Keith go. Never. Seconds later, he’s by Keith’s side, pressing his hand to his shoulder, “Please, don’t go.”

“But…” Keith frowns, staring over at the distance, “Dad…”

“We need you more, Keith,” Pidge frowns from his side, holding on his hand, “We want you back home.”

“Yeah, ditto, man,” Hunk appears, gripping his other hand, “We miss you too much and it’s been like...three minutes.”

“Yeah, mullet,” Lance also appears, holding onto his arm, “We gotta keep you.”

“But…” He frowns, eyes watering, “I thought you guys hated me.”

“No!” All three exclaim, “We don’t!”

“But…”

“We’ve been idiots.”

“We’re family, dude,” Lance rolls his eyes, “You can’t run away from us. We’re going to follow you wherever you go, you know?”

“Yeah, who else are we going to spoil when we get back?” Hunk cries as he hugs Keith, “I have some new ideas for food. You’re gonna miss out on the best dishes you’ve ever tasted, man.”

“But…”

“Keith,” Shiro speaks up, placing his hand to the other’s chin, noting that he was looking more solid than before, “Please. Stay.”

“Shiro,” Keith looks regretful, “I can-”

“I heard what you said,” Shiro interrupts him, “Before you...died. I love you too.”

“But…” Keith’s eyes widen, “You can’t…”

“But I do,” Shiro smiles at him fondly, placing his hands to Keith’s face, “I’ve been feeling this way since we got into space, maybe a little before Kerberos too. I never wanted to take advantage, not after what you said to the hologram me. But...I can’t lose you, Keith. You mean everything to me. I can’t lose you either.”

“I…” Keith glances back at the shadow in the distance. Shiro can’t see whatever Keith seems to see, but he does feel as if the shadow is also encouraging Keith to stay. The younger peers at him, eyes wet before he grips Shiro, wrapping his arms around him, “I don’t want to go. I want to stay. You guys...are my first real family since pops died.”

“Well, we’re going to be the best family you’ll know.”

“Yeah!”

“We’re not leaving you alone!”

“They’re right,” Shiro grins softly before he continues to hold Keith’s face, “We’re not leaving you alone. I made a promise years ago, and I’m not forgetting it any time soon. I need you, Keith. Not as the Red Paladin. I need you as my best friend, as my love.”

“Heh…” Keith grins back, fond as ever, “I’m not leaving you either. I’m going to be here to save you, as many times as it takes, you know? I love you.”

“I love you too,” Shiro smiles, pressing his forehead to Keith’s. The other slowly leans in until they’re inches away from each other. The colors beneath them begin to blend together as he presses the rest of the way, his lips brushing Keith’s before everything blinds them.

He wakes to the dirty floor. He hears the others groaning as they all move about. He instantly gets his bearings, glancing right at Keith who is below him.

“Did it work?”

“Is he...okay?”

“Woah!”

They watch as Keith’s locks slowly fade in color, each strand becoming bone white. He regains his color, a healthy peach before the wounds glow in flashes of red and green and blue and purple and yellow. Seconds go by before he gasps, taking in a fresh breath, the first in forever. His eyes slide open slowly, a brighter purple now than they had been before.

“Sh’ro,” he grins and it’s the best sight Shiro’s ever seen, despite the blood tacked onto the other, “Sh’ro.”

“I’m here,” Shiro grins, pressing his hands to Keith’s neck, feeling that wonderful pulse, “I’m here. I’m not leaving. Go to sleep. We got you.”

“‘Kay,'' the other nods weakly before he slides into sleep. Shiro just holds him there, making sure he’s real. He’s real. He’s alive. He’s okay. They were going to be okay.

“Just sleep,” Shiro hold him close, “I’ll stay here with you.”

This time, when Keith rests his head on his shoulder, Shiro knows he doesn’t have to worry.


End file.
